By Emily Rose Finn
A contractor building a private pedestrian tunnel under State Road A1A has Manalapan’s permission to keep working on the tunnel for about two weeks into the start of the town’s tourist season in November.
Last year, a monthslong tunnel project in the spring caused extended traffic tie-ups on A1A due to lane closures. That led commissioners to pass an ordinance prohibiting tunnel constructions between Nov. 1 and April 14 without advance approval of the Town Commission.
The request for 1860 S. Ocean Blvd. to keep its tunnel project going into November was the first to come before the commission since the ordinance took effect. Commissioners approved the request at their Sept. 8 meeting.
The passageway will connect a main house on the west side of A1A with a beach house on the east side. RWB Construction Management asked to keep working “through November 14.”
Commissioners originally approved the 1860 S. Ocean tunnel on May 20, 2025 — the same meeting at which they adopted the tunnel ordinance.
The contractor blamed the delay on the state, which did not approve the work until Aug. 24, after three years of permitting.
“The controlling factor in this schedule has been the Florida Department of Transportation permitting process,” RWB wrote in a Sept. 3 letter. “Installation could not lawfully commence prior to that issuance.” The company promised to follow an approved traffic plan and keep the right-of-way “secured and passable.”
While construction is underway, traffic shifts onto a temporary bypass lane and a police officer is on site daily, able to take manual control of the traffic signal if needed.
Though they approved the work into November, commissioners were concerned about the impact of the tunnel project combined with A1A lane closures to the south for water pipe work being done in Ocean Ridge, which they said already backs up traffic on busy weekends.
“Then it’s like Frogger going down to A1A,” Vice Mayor Simone Bonutti said.
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